Post by teddyp00 on Jan 4, 2007 8:51:13 GMT -6
www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=549110
UW-Milwaukee's seniors from 2005-'06 often spoke about how time was flying by faster than they'd ever expected.
Ricky Franklin is one of three Panthers who had to sit out last season.
For Panthers forward Paige Paulsen and guards Ricky Franklin and Kaylan Anderson, last season seemed to take forever.
Although they were assigned jersey numbers and listed on the roster, Paulsen, Franklin and Anderson did not play, each for a different reason.
Yet the players knew that 2006-'07 would be theirs for the taking.
It took a little time to adjust, or in Paulsen's case, readjust to college basketball after not being on the court in a live game for a year, but this trio is starting to see positive results of the effort they've given to get back up to speed.
Paulsen, a junior, sat out 2005-'06 due to NCAA transfer rules. He participated on the scout team until January, when he injured his right shoulder, which required surgery.
For five months, Paulsen couldn't even shoot a layup, which set him back even further. Still, he was expected to become an instant leader this season due to the fact that he was the only player on the roster that had ever started a Division I game.
In the first nine games of the season, it was obvious that his timing was off. He was riddled by foul trouble and missed long spells of games because of it.
But Paulsen found a way to consistently be a double-digit scorer (11.6 points) and lead UWM in rebounding (6.4), even while he's worked out the kinks.
"I had to get a lot back in a short period of time over the summer," said Paulsen, a former Mr. Basketball in South Dakota. "Once you start playing games, you have to find your niche.
"A lot of people think that, 'Oh, you got your two months of practice.' Games and practice are totally different. It takes a while to get everything feeling like it used to."
While all Paulsen needed to was get his skills back to their previous state, Franklin started the season from scratch. The sophomore not only sat out the entire year from playing basketball, but, due to a failure to meet NCAA initial eligibility standards, he couldn't even practice with the team.
It neutralized the leap he made as a high school senior at Milwaukee Riverside, where he went from a virtual unknown to a first-team all-state honoree.
Despite being undersized at 6-1, Franklin gained enough confidence from his coaches to be named a starter in sort of a swingman's role.
It soon became clear that he, too, was a bit rusty.
And as Franklin's shooting percentage headed south over the first 10 games, so did his confidence.
UWM assistant coach Duffy Conroy, whose primary duties involve player development, had a bird's eye view of the depth of Franklin's situation.
"In the off-season, you try to give guys a head start for when practice begins," Conroy said. "You're trying to cram in a lot in a short time, and it's been a crash course for Ricky in that respect. It's been difficult for him, but he's done a great job of understanding what we're trying to do, and he's improving all the time."
Indeed, Franklin, now coming off the bench, has witnessed his fortunes rise. His scoring is still not quite there but he finds open players with ease and has become a vital cog in UWM's swing offense.
Franklin said he studied himself on film to see where things were going wrong.
"I'm starting to catch up with the speed of the game now," Franklin said. "All of (the coaches and teammates) tell me the same thing: to keep playing hard."
Unlike Paulsen and Franklin, Anderson wasn't necessarily required to sit out last season. He redshirted as a freshman, knowing his best basketball was ahead of him.
"It was harder than I thought it was," Anderson said. "When I first did it, I felt like, 'I have four years to do what they're doing right now. But then it's like, 'I'm going to war with these dudes in practice, now when they're going to war, I can't help them out.' It was pretty hard."
Yet Anderson is a better player now because of it, Conroy said.
Anderson is in the nine-player rotation and is depended upon to be a defensive stopper and someone able to nail a key basket here or there.
"He understands what we're looking for, what we want," Conroy added. "He understands the reads and the cuts a little bit better, that's helped him with the maturing process."
UW-Milwaukee's seniors from 2005-'06 often spoke about how time was flying by faster than they'd ever expected.
Ricky Franklin is one of three Panthers who had to sit out last season.
For Panthers forward Paige Paulsen and guards Ricky Franklin and Kaylan Anderson, last season seemed to take forever.
Although they were assigned jersey numbers and listed on the roster, Paulsen, Franklin and Anderson did not play, each for a different reason.
Yet the players knew that 2006-'07 would be theirs for the taking.
It took a little time to adjust, or in Paulsen's case, readjust to college basketball after not being on the court in a live game for a year, but this trio is starting to see positive results of the effort they've given to get back up to speed.
Paulsen, a junior, sat out 2005-'06 due to NCAA transfer rules. He participated on the scout team until January, when he injured his right shoulder, which required surgery.
For five months, Paulsen couldn't even shoot a layup, which set him back even further. Still, he was expected to become an instant leader this season due to the fact that he was the only player on the roster that had ever started a Division I game.
In the first nine games of the season, it was obvious that his timing was off. He was riddled by foul trouble and missed long spells of games because of it.
But Paulsen found a way to consistently be a double-digit scorer (11.6 points) and lead UWM in rebounding (6.4), even while he's worked out the kinks.
"I had to get a lot back in a short period of time over the summer," said Paulsen, a former Mr. Basketball in South Dakota. "Once you start playing games, you have to find your niche.
"A lot of people think that, 'Oh, you got your two months of practice.' Games and practice are totally different. It takes a while to get everything feeling like it used to."
While all Paulsen needed to was get his skills back to their previous state, Franklin started the season from scratch. The sophomore not only sat out the entire year from playing basketball, but, due to a failure to meet NCAA initial eligibility standards, he couldn't even practice with the team.
It neutralized the leap he made as a high school senior at Milwaukee Riverside, where he went from a virtual unknown to a first-team all-state honoree.
Despite being undersized at 6-1, Franklin gained enough confidence from his coaches to be named a starter in sort of a swingman's role.
It soon became clear that he, too, was a bit rusty.
And as Franklin's shooting percentage headed south over the first 10 games, so did his confidence.
UWM assistant coach Duffy Conroy, whose primary duties involve player development, had a bird's eye view of the depth of Franklin's situation.
"In the off-season, you try to give guys a head start for when practice begins," Conroy said. "You're trying to cram in a lot in a short time, and it's been a crash course for Ricky in that respect. It's been difficult for him, but he's done a great job of understanding what we're trying to do, and he's improving all the time."
Indeed, Franklin, now coming off the bench, has witnessed his fortunes rise. His scoring is still not quite there but he finds open players with ease and has become a vital cog in UWM's swing offense.
Franklin said he studied himself on film to see where things were going wrong.
"I'm starting to catch up with the speed of the game now," Franklin said. "All of (the coaches and teammates) tell me the same thing: to keep playing hard."
Unlike Paulsen and Franklin, Anderson wasn't necessarily required to sit out last season. He redshirted as a freshman, knowing his best basketball was ahead of him.
"It was harder than I thought it was," Anderson said. "When I first did it, I felt like, 'I have four years to do what they're doing right now. But then it's like, 'I'm going to war with these dudes in practice, now when they're going to war, I can't help them out.' It was pretty hard."
Yet Anderson is a better player now because of it, Conroy said.
Anderson is in the nine-player rotation and is depended upon to be a defensive stopper and someone able to nail a key basket here or there.
"He understands what we're looking for, what we want," Conroy added. "He understands the reads and the cuts a little bit better, that's helped him with the maturing process."